


Tutor Me

by wisia



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, M/M, MIT Era, Tutoring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-26
Updated: 2015-04-26
Packaged: 2018-03-25 20:08:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3823153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wisia/pseuds/wisia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony really wants James Rhodes to be his math tutor. The guy was hot, and if he had to play dumb, well, he can say he hates math.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tutor Me

**Author's Note:**

> Based off this [ AU here ](http://tea-and-outer-space.tumblr.com/post/99399784683/aus):
> 
> "i am actually good at math but the math tutor is really hot so i’m pretending to be dumb au"
> 
> \---------
> 
> I know I haven't updated Bolt fic with RhodeyTony. I feel bad but I was and am still working on my Cap-Iron Man RBB. Probably when that is all done. But I saw that post today and couldn't resist trying it out.

Okay. Tony’s really good at math. Like, seriously good, and he’s not just talking about Pythagoras and Archimedes (which was actually physics but whatever). He’s talking about high level shit, things that would fly over your head because Tony’s a goddamn genius. He goes to MIT for god’s sakes and working on  _two_ PHDs concurrently.  _But_ , here he was lying.

“Yeah,” Tony says. “I suck at math. I hate it.”

Damn, did that hurt to say. Hit him right in the gut, but the smile on James Rhodes’s face was more than soothing and totally worth it. That smile was brilliant and just about one of the best thing Tony had ever seen in his entire life.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” James says. “Not everyone takes to math.”

“I know,” Tony says. He can totally empathize. He had never felt more embarrassed for someone than that idiotic professor back in freshman year. That forgetting to carry the one would have been cute if the equation wasn’t totally wrong in the first place.

“So,” Tony presses. “Can you help me?”

Because he doesn’t know math. Not for James Rhodes at any rate. Please be my tutor, Tony thinks.

“Uh, I can,” James says. “If you need it.”

“Totally need it,” Tony lies and puts on his best desperate look complete with wide watery eyes and pouting lips.

“Right,” James says. He looks a little bewildered, not that Tony can blame him. To be fair, Tony did ambush the guy right after a class with Professor Harding. The professor was really one of the worst professors out there. His assignments made you cry before you even looked at them. Well, Tony never felt any of that, but he’s not exactly normal, is he?

“I heard you were the best,” Tony adds, hoping it’ll sweeten the deal.

“You did?” And James looks pleased, in awe that someone said that about him.

“I did,” Tony says cheerfully. “Best of the best—top of your class.”

It’s not a lie either. Tony doesn’t fall for dumbasses, and Tony’s heard about James Rhodes—and no one knew your name at MIT unless you were really good at what you do. Too many smart people or something. Okay, maybe that was just Tony, but he really did hear about how good James was. James was smart, and he was superhot. Hell, James was even on the buff side, being in the ROTC and everything. Did Tony mention the guy wanted to be in the Air Force? Flying! That’s like, ugh, right in the center of Tony’s many loves.

Also, James was nice to Tony once. Didn’t even know who Tony Stark was but helped him right out. That was probably the most important thing, and why Tony looked up James Rhodes in the first place. He had to know who he was crushing on.

“That’s good to hear,” James says. “I wouldn’t say I’m the best though. Not the smartest.”

He rubs a hand behind his head, a little modest, and it’s adorable. Tony wants to kiss the hell out of him.

“But if I can help you,” Rhodey continues, “why don’t you give me your number and we can talk about when we can meet up?”

“Sure,” Tony says, almost too eagerly. He fumbles through his pockets for a pen. Tony drops it, and he totally did not plan for that happen. Because James bends over to pick it up for him, and that was one glorious ass. It leaves Tony blinking and staring, thankfully with his mouth closed.

“Here,” James says and takes Tony’s arm. “Can I?”

“Y-yeah,” Tony says and hopes to hell that comes out smooth. “Go ahead.”

It’s hard to suppress the whimper in his throat at how hot that palm is on his skin where it’s gently encircled around his wrist. James was _touching_ him, and Tony really wasn’t prepared for this. He only got so far as get James Rhodes to be his tutor and plan out how the first meeting would go. There was nothing in there about touching.

James’s hand is light, and Tony is acutely aware of how soft each pen stroke is. It sparks something wonderfully carnal in the bottom of his gut, but of course it doesn’t last. Too soon James is done writing, and Tony mourns the loss of that hand on his arm.

“Thanks,” Tony croaks out. He resists the urge to put a hand over where James touched him. James hand him the pen and offers his arm in return.

“No problem. You can just write on my arm too.”

“Uh huh,” Tony says, just a little distracted. Because he gets to touch James, touch that beautiful skin and feel it beneath his fingertips. He bites the bottom of his lips as he takes James’s arm. Tony isn’t going to be one of those creepy dudes that feel people up. Nope, he really wasn’t. Carefully, Tony writes his number down. His handwriting is usually messy, but these are just numbers—damnit. Tony stares at the numbers in dismay, at how crooky it was and how the nine looked like a q. So much for steady hands.

“Awesome,” James says, taking his arm back to look at the number. “What time should I call you?”

“Any, any time,” Tony says. Wait, no, he has class, doesn’t he? He can’t look too desperate. “Scratch that—uh, at night. I'm pretty free at night.”

“Okay,” James says, and Tony’s heart wants to explode as he gets another brilliant smile. “I’ll call you later tonight then.”

“Great,” Tony says. “I’ll, I’ll be waiting.”

That sounded so lame, and Tony is ashamed to admit he watches James walk away like a pining, love sick person. Well, he was, but still. Tony Stark did not pine. He merely touches his wrist where James touched him in wonder.

\--------------

They meet up two days later in James’s dorm after a terrible phone call. (James thought his four was a nine.) Tony obviously can’t bring him back to his place. For one thing, it’s off campus, and James doesn’t know that he is the Tony Stark.

“I’m sorry, it’s a little cramp,” James apologized for his messy room where books are piled high and clothes are draped neatly on the dresser. It’s still a whole lot nicer and cleaner than Tony’s entire apartment.

“Nah, it’s fine,” Tony says casually, but when James isn’t looking he quickly catalogs everything he can. He thought it’ll be in the library or some cafe, but James actually agreed to meeting in his room. Tony eyes the bed wistfully. He wonders if he could lie in those sheets one day if he gets close enough to James.

“So,” James says, and Tony realizes he’s staring at the bed too long.

“Uh,” Tony stutters. “Your bed looks so comfy.”

James stares at him, and Tony just babbles. “Yeah, it looks really comfy. Though that could be because I’m kind of sleepy right now. I don’t really—kind of pulled an all nighter but I was working on something really important.”

“Oh, what were you working on?”

“That’s,” Tony says and stops abruptly. There’s no way he can babble about working on a possible helper bot. It would give him away because you had to be somewhat good at math in order to build it.

“It’s, it’s boring,” Tony says lamely. “You know, those projects that professors give you and you have to work all semester or something on them. I procrastinate.”

James laughs, and Tony rubs his hands on his jeans to cover up the fact he was sweating about his lies.

“Can’t blame you. I had the odd night here and there.”

“Yeah,” Tony says. “So, uh, where to start?”

“That’s up to you. I don’t know where you’re weak on. What math are you taking?”

“Differential Geometry,” Tony says easily because he planned this. He had a plan, and he was going to stick to it. He even ordered a copy of the text that one of the professors on campus used for it, and he pulled it out now.

James’s eyebrows raises in surprise as he takes the book from Tony. “Geometry, really?”

“Yeah,” Tony nods enthusiastically. “Geometry—don’t understand the shapes at all. It’s definitely not my favorite kind of curves.”

And Tony wants to bash himself in the head. Why did he say that? Now, Tony sounded like some kind of pervert. James just laughed some more though.

“True that,” he agrees. “So, where are you on the, uh, differential geometry?”

“Um…,” Tony flips to a random page. “This.”

James looks at it in confusion. “The…preface?”

Tony blushes, red spreading across his cheeks. “No, no. I mean, this.”

He quickly turns the page randomly again, to somewhere in the middle of the book. It’s about the Gauss-Bonnet Theorem.

“Ah, okay,” James says, but he’s still looking at Tony weirdly. “How would you like to do this? Do you want me to go over it with your or do you want to do some equations and I can see where you went wrong?”

“Go over it please,” Tony says, and he means that sincerely. He’s not just asking to listen to James’s voice which is so nice to listen to.

“All right,” James says. He grabs some sheet of paper, and Tony leans in closer as James starts talking about the theorem. James explains it really nicely, and Tony’s sure that if he didn’t know what the Gauss-Bonnet Theorem was he would definitely know it now. And because he can multitask, Tony can also _really_ appreciate the proximity they have. Tony’s so close he can smell how good James smells.

“Got that?”

“Yeah,” Tony says, just a little dazed. He can’t believe he’s so near James Rhodes and get to talk to him. “You make it sound so simple.”

Tony’s in love. Seriously. If James could explain an equation like that, then imagine what James could explain with a concept much more difficult.

“Okay,” James says. He tugs the textbook toward them and picks an equation. “Why don’t you try doing one? How about this one?”

Tony takes one glance, and it doesn’t take much for him to solve it within his head. At this point, Tony really should be writing on paper, but he’s so used to solving equations that he just blurts out the answer.

There’s a deafening silence between them.

“Uh,” Tony says. “I—I cheated! I already knew the answer be-because I did it before.”

James looks at him with an incredulous expression on his face. It disappears within forty seconds, and he shuts the textbook with a snap that’s so loud it echoes in the room.

“You know,” James says, “if you want to talk to me, all you had to do was ask. I know you’re Tony Stark.”

“Um,” Tony says because no. That's not true at all. Nobody wants to talk to him, and definitely not a hottie like James.

“That’s not true,” James says, and Tony realizes with horror that he said the last bit out loud. “I would love to talk to you. You’re interesting—got all the professors in a buzz.”

“Oh,” Tony says hollowly. “That’s good?”

“Yeah. Who wouldn’t talk to a genius?”

And Tony’s heart sinks. Because James probably wouldn’t talk to him otherwise then, if he wasn’t a genius. He tries to smile. If this was all he could get, he might as well take it.

“Not like that,” James says hastily. “I mean, yeah, you’re a genius, but you’re—I didn’t think you’ll want to talk to me.”

“I would,” Tony says because who wouldn’t want to talk to James? “You’re—you’re in the ROTC, and you like flying! That’s so cool.”

The force of his words startles James. “You’re into aviation? I thought you were an engineer.”

“Yeah,” Tony says with a roll of his eyes. “I’m an engineer, but who doesn’t want to fly? I want to go to the moon.”

“Me too,” James says. “It’s not likely, but it’ll be nice if I could.”

“You can,” Tony says. “Why not?”

“Maybe. Anyway, if you wanted to talk to me, all you need to do was ask.”

Tony’s glad for that, but it isn’t what he wants. He breathes in deep, puts a hand on James’s hand. He can do this. He got this far with his plan, he might as well move something up ahead from the future phase.

“I don’t want to talk to you,” Tony says lightly. “I want to _date_ you.”

“Oh,” James say. “ _Oh_!”

Tony fidgets, waiting. “So, would you?”

“Yeah,” James smiles. “How can I say no after all the effort you went to talk to me?”

And Tony knows that yes smile will forever be etched into his mind. He’s got a date with James Rhodes.


End file.
